F’n squirrels!!!

So I parked my truck at work around 6:45am. Around 7pm went to pull it in the station to wash it and it started and died as soon as I put it in drive. Then it wouldn’t start up again. Immediately got a sinking feeling in my gut and popped the hood to find a squirrel nest & chewed up harness. Mind you, this was done in 1 day, as I had the hood open yesterday looking/ measuring for a future supercharger install. My truck is always garaged at home. Peppermint oil & whatever else keeps these bastards out will be ready to go as soon as it is repaired.

 

Those squirrels got nuts!
That sucks!!!

 

Yup. But we are saving the world with edible wiring.




OP, this is one of my big fears. I don't have squirrels, but mice are around. Such a bummer that the little bastards can cause such a problem.

 

Unfortunately, we’ve had issues over the years with squirrels at this station. The soy based wiring I’m sure doesn’t help!!!

 

Our 4runner lives in the desert, I took it to Estes Park for a week, and when I came home it needed a oil change so I also replaced the cabin filter, I had all kinds of Colorado “forget me nots” in that filter that I’m sure came from only 4 nights in Estes and 2 in pagosa.

 

Haha that second pic is great! Are your cats indoor outdoor? I lost to many outdoor growing up, but we have enough hood cats and owls that we do ok. Pretty sure our new pup hunts a mouse by our oleanders night time

 

They’d have plenty of prey to hunt. Unfortunately it’s the same cycle, we bitch & complain after someone’s vehicle gets damaged, the village puts a trap out and catches 1 and feels the problem is solved. We aren’t allowed to take matters in our own hands.

 

We live in squirrel heaven and I ain't ever seen a squirrel so much as walk on my truck. Crazy.

We now live next door to about 8-12 feral cats. I doubt I see so much as a snake, squirrel, mouse, or bird for a square mile

 

Barn kittehs are the best.

 

That sucks. This has never happened to me and hoping it never will!

 

if you go peppermint spray i wouldnt get the pest control kind because they heavily dilute it. best thing that worked for me was getting some pure peppermint oil off Amazon. strong stuff. i placed cotton balls in various spots in the bay and hit it with a spray bottle. being paranoid i'd refresh it with a few shots on each cotton ball each week. maybe overkill but they didnt get me again. if i'm planning to leave my truck parked for days, i have a whole box of fabric softener sheets that i open and place in the bay. gets the whole thing smelly rosey and deters them away. then i leave a note or something on my seat to remind to remove it from the bay. pita trying to keep these guys away. they are super active in my neighborhood.

 

I bait my traps with poison with a touch of peanut butter, if they spring the trap and get the prize, they die anyway ! I keep my attack going 24/7/365 ,it's the only way.

 

Point taken.

 

I was referring to mice, no squirrels issues as of right now.

 

Never considered it either, thanks for enlightening me.

 

Mix bleach 50-50 in a spray bottle and lay that over ground area and a small amount here and there under hood. Neither mice nor other varmints like the odor (even when dry). Luck.

 

Congrats!!!! On deciding to S/C that is....

We have an entire fox family that roams our area. See 2-3 of them every night on the cameras. They do a good job.

I second the cat option. Save some poor guy from the needle and give em a warm place to sleep. They will do the rest

 

The bad thing about bait is that it attracts stuff that possibly otherwise wouldnt come to the area. I have found that the easiest thing to deter rodents is having lights on around the driveway near my truck.

 

Kind of a nasty approach, but the only think that has ever worked for me is "mace" pepper spray.

 

+1 on no poison.

A year ago we had a rat invasion. Killed 10 and stayed away from using poison due to hawks and eagles around us. We've seen bald eagles in our neighborhood. The damage from poison is devastating. No matter how bad my pest situation is, I won't resort to poison.

 

Estes Park is awesome. Wife and I try to go once a year and stay at the Stanley.

 

Bastages! I had squirrels eating away at my firewall insulation, but fortunately not my wiring. I put

$7 Tomcat Rat Snap Trap, 1 Rat Size Trap - Reusable - Effectively Kill Rats - Ideal for Home and Farm Use

large snap traps behind the front tires and got at least 3 that way (PB as bait). I also used

$13 Grannick's Bitter Apple Taste Deterrent Spray Bottle for Dogs, 8 Ounces, Single

bitter apple spray in the engine bay. I don't know if that worked or if I just got all the offenders, but I've been squirrel free since.

 

Placed a few bars of pink dove, a couple of rags soaked with pine sol, and a good bit of peppermint oil all under the hood. A few pool tabs under and around the perimeter just cuz I can. Also screened the air intake for the hvac. So far, so good. As for the environment friendly wiring, when it needs to be replaced several times over, how friendly is it? Kinda reminds me of paint nowadays. Corporations are using the "green" excuse for profits all around.

 

Wrap as much of the wiring as possible with aluminum window screen.